RODP Sample Module

Educational research in online education suggests that content should be easy to read and navigate.  The TBR eLearning Best Practices support the concept that breakingcontent into shorter individual documents increases the readability of the text.  All RODP content modules are to be broken into separate smaller sections, or chunked. RODP content module should be broken into sections in a manner similar to the sample below. 

All course modules within all RODP courses shall use the naming sequence of "Module". Content divisions shall not be named or separated into units, weeks, lessons, etc. The

The RODP does not indicate how many modules of content shall be in a course - that is a determination to be decided by the course developer.

Module Components:

• Overview
• Module Learning Outcomes
• Key Words & Concepts
• Content, Lectures, Readings, Assignments, etc
• Additional Resources
• Assessments & evaluations
• Summary & Reflection.

Module Component Descriptions:

Overview – A general statement about the nature of the module and its relation to the course as a whole.

Module Learning Outcomes – This should be the specific outcomes that relate to each individual module.  Students should be given notification of what they will be expected to learn in each module. 

It is very important to make sure that the module outcomes align properly with the assessments in the same module.

Key Words & Concepts – A list of keywords, with or without definitions.  The concepts might include a list of concepts listed here or mentioned for emphasis so the student will be on the alert for the explanation later in the module.

Content, Lectures, Readings, Assignments, etc – This can be a very broad area to cover and may include multiple topic links. You may want to separate links to e-lectures, discussion board forums, PowerPoint files, reading requirements,  self-assessment activities, assignments, etc.  You may want to create separate sub-modules for areas that multiple items such as assignments.

Additional Resources –  You may want to provide the students with a list of additional resources either in print or online.  The internet has changed dramatically over the past 2-3 years and there is a staggering amount of resources that are now available online. 

Assessments & Evaluations – Students need detailed explanations of assignments with full descriptions of how to submit the assignment(s) and when they are due.  Students also need to know the nature of each graded activity.  Be prepared to walk new students through the process or refer them to online help. 

Summary & Reflection – This section provides a way to engage the student I a dialogue about what they have learned by completing the module.  This dialogue might take place in the discussions area and contribute to a student’s participation grade.

Annotated Research Support References

• A literature review by Janicki and Liegle (2001) showed that course navigation was one of ten effective web-based design concepts that appeared repeatedly in the research literature
• Swan (2001) cited clear and consistent course structure as one of three factors which “contribute significantly to the success of asynchronous online courses.”
• Muirhead (2001) outlined the importance of a well-written syllabus.
• Youngblood, Trede, & DeCorpo (2001) identified a number of essential tasks for an effective teacher including welcoming students and clarifying expectations for contributing online
• Conrad (2002) found that learners judge instructors based on how clearly and completely online course materials present the details of the course. A well-organized course with a clear overview and introduction including a clear statement of expectations, explanation of the course outline, clear timelines, and well-written course notes helped learners feel that they were getting off to a good start in their course.
• Shirathuddin, Hassan, & Landoni’s (2003) critically reviewed four well-known guidelines for design usability in their pursuit for promoting content delivery in higher education courses.  They identified seven factors of usability that should be considered:  screen layout or appearance (information should be easy to find and effective); consistency (for example, navigation and page structure); accessibility ("Having good design and useful content are inadequate without considering the accessibility factors" (p. 122)); good navigation; media use to enhance information presentation; interactivity (for example feedback and searching for information); and useful and relevant content with depth and breadth
• The value of learning objectives in describing measurable outcomes has long-standing support in the literature (e.g., Bloom, 1956; Mager, 1962, 1975).  As the QM Rubric annotations note, “measurable learning objectives help teachers precisely describe what students are to gain from instruction” and “accurately assess student accomplishment.”  
• Murphy, Mahoney, & Harvell (2000) found that students without clear direction can be easily confused about their obligations. Group goals especially require clear and achievable objectives.
• Spallek, Berthold, Shanley, & Attstrom (2000) surveyed dental professionals on quality assurance criteria for online courses.  The importance of courses being scientifically based, regularly updated, easy to navigate, have defined educational objectives, stimulate learning, be created by appropriately qualified academics, and be at an appropriate level for the intended participants were deemed important. 
• Shea et al. (2002) also found that students in online courses who reported that communicating clear expectations on how to succeed in the course correlated highly with levels of satisfaction and perceived learning.
• Sims, Dobbs, & Hand (2002) pointed out that “unit or course content should be considered in terms of the interaction with major design issues” (p. 138).
• Conrad (2002) found that learners judge instructors based on how clearly and completely online course materials present the details of the course. A well-organized course with a clear overview and introduction including a clear statement of expectations, explanation of the course outline, clear timelines, and well-written course notes helped learners feel that they were getting off to a good start in their course.
• Pawan, Paulus, Yalcin, & Chang (2003) pointed out that "it is important to first provide clear participant requirements in terms of length, content expectations, and timeliness" (cited in Garrison & Cleveland, 2005, p. 145).
• Trigano & Pacurar-Giacomini (2004), building on the literature in human machine-interface, web ergonomic, pedagogical structure, and pedagogical environment, noted that “because of the non-linearity of the information representation in a digital support…(sequence)…the information in hypermedia should be based on information-units (emphasis in original) corresponding to computation-units…[so that the reader/learner will be able to identify] which is necessary and sufficient in order to understand a concept” (pp. 22-23).
• Stewart, Hong, & Strudler (2004) in preparing for quality evaluation of online courses highlighted Driscoll’s 1998 and Khan’s 1997 work on web-based instruction – “attention to education details (e.g., clear guidance and direction for each lesson, clear objectives, adequate practice, and meaningful feedback)” (p. 133) was among those considered important.  
• Koszalka & Ganesan (2004) considered information, instruction, and learning design elements as identified in the web-based online learning literature and applied those to a course which was “initially a failure” (p. 243).  Issues addressed were confusion of the learner when “haphazard integration” of CMS features “did not match course objectives”(Oliver, 1999; Kearsley, 1997; Collis, 1999; Grabowski & Small, 1997 were cited); “practice components were often weak or missing (Gilbert & Moore, 1998; Kidney & Puckett, 2003 were cited) (pp. 244-245) ; activities and resources did not closely match instructional purposes (Kidney & Puckett, 2003; Koszalka & Bianco, 2001; Simonson et al., 2003 cited); and “learners did not see a connection between the activities they were completing” and the overall objective (p. 251). 
• Horn, Robert E.,Developing Procedures Policies & Documentation, Information Mapping Inc, found By chunking information the author improves the reader's comprehension and ability to access and retrieve the information.
• U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, (2007) Here are six keys to organizing logically within a page of content:  1) Break the text into manageable pieces….
• Howles, L. and Howles D. (2001) found that participants spent twice as much time with shorter paragraphs as material in longer paragraphs.
• Horn, Robert (1999) The chunking principle (which says, "group all information into small manageable units"); (2) The relevance principle (which says "include in one chunk only information that relates to one main point based on that information's purpose or function for the reader");
• Tognazzini, B. (1999) noted the disorientation that results from scrolling on computer screens. The reader's loss of context is particularly troublesome when such basic navigational elements as document titles, site identifiers, and links to other site pages disappear off-screen while scrolling.
• Lynch & Horton, (2002), Few Web users spend time reading long passages of text on-screen. Most users either save long documents to disk or print them for more comfortable reading. Discrete chunks of information lend themselves to Web links. The user of a Web link usually expects to find a specific unit of relevant information, not a book's worth of general content. Chunking can help organize and present information in a uniform format. This allows users not only to apply past experience with a site to future searches and explorations but also to predict how an unfamiliar section of a Web site will be organized. Concise chunks of information are better suited to the computer screen, which provides a limited view of long documents. Long Web pages tend to disorient readers; they require users to scroll long distances and to remember what is off-screen.

Return to main Course Development Page